Patients Stories

Trey Cuddihy

This letter was written from our hearts to the awesome team at HALO-Flight that were without a doubt angels sent from heaven to save our son Joseph Trey Cuddihy’s life in Cuero, Tx.

Our son Trey is 10 years old, he’s in the 5th grade and a very bright boy. He is a caring and sensitive child who has a heart the size of Texas. He is our youngest of four. He is without doubt his daddy’s little buddy and best friend. I, as his mother, am so proud to have him as my little man, my pride and joy. Our family was completed when we were blessed with his birth.

Sadly, Trey has asthma. He was never sick a day for the first five years of his life. In 2001 we moved back to Texas due to family illnesses and Trey has struggled something awful for the last 5 years with his asthma. Recently Trey was admitted to our local hospital with a bad case of asthma. When I arrived his oxygen levels were only 82% and getting worse. In the ICU they were wonderful but they had no success getting his oxygen levels higher. The doctor decided to call Driscoll Children’s Hospital to transfer Trey to Corpus Christi for further treatment. The doctor at Driscoll decided Trey should be flown by HALO-Flight. I call them the “A-Team”, the Best of the Best!

As I’m sure you can imagine, it was a very intense day for my husband Joe and I. When the flight crew arrived I met a nurse named Dan, a paramedic named Derrek and a pilot named Curt. The crew evaluated Trey and decided he needed to be placed on a ventilator. Dan, the RN and Derrek, the Paramedic explained everything to us as far as what they were going to do and why. Trey was then given five medications in his IV and was intubated. They worked quick and efficiently. As we walked with the HALO team and our son out to the helicopter, the team stopped so we could each kiss and hug Trey, who was now asleep. They asked us not to worry and told us to please drive safely. The helicopter flight took only 45 minutes but our drive took us over 2 hours.

When Joe and I arrived at Driscoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi, Tx. Trey was in the PICU and the crew had already left, off to save another life I’m sure. We never got a chance to thank them in person which is why I am writing this letter. We cannot say “Thank You” enough for all they did for our son and our family. I referred to them earlier as the A-Team, the Best of the Best, and I truly mean that. They never hesitated one time for anything. Their mission was to save our little boy’s life and that was a target that they were not willing to miss.